Ireland - A day and a night in Lahinch, County Clare
- lorisolan
- Oct 3, 2018
- 4 min read
I hail from Ireland but have never really seen much of this beautiful country as I was living most of my 20's in Australia and South East Asia. I came home in July of this year and made it my business to try and see the little gems of places I had been missing out on.
My brother had been to the Cliffs of Moher, outside Lahinch, Co. Clare the previous year and he highly recommended it so that was going to be my first destination.
I arrived down around lunchtime and was looking forward to some pub grub. Lahinch is full of cute, traditional Irish bars and restaurants along the Main Street so it was hard to pick where to go. I looked up a few places online and Dannys Mac's had a good rating and reviews. Danny Mac's was quite small and there was a short queue ahead of us but we managed to get a table within 5 minutes. The menu had a great selection. As we were right beside the sea, I decided to go with the Seafood Chowder as I had read the fish caught around here was super fresh. It definitely did not disappoint.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Irish-Restaurant/Danny-Macs-395777090520905/ After our lovely lunch, we drove out towards the Cliffs of Moher. It was so busy with tour buses and cars that the car park was full and we were told to come back in an hour. I would advise avoiding the Cliffs between 12-3pm for this reason. We continued driving and made our way down to Doolin Pier. The drive down the extremely narrow and winding roads was just spectacular.
Drive to Doolin Pier
Doolin Pier itself was beautiful. Just head down to the rocks and enjoy the view of the Cliffs of Moher from the far side of the water. There are boat tours you can get from Doolin Pier to the cliffs to experience another angle, however with my motion sickness and the choppy waters I could see, I was not taking any chances.
Doolin Pier, Doolin
We were so lucky with the weather as well as the West of Ireland seems to get hammered with winds and bad weather 75% of the time. We were pushed for time as we only had one day to do what we wanted to however I would love to get back to see more such as Doolin Caves and the nearby Aran Islands. You will find a list of things to do in and around Doolin in the below link:
After Doolin, we headed back to the cliffs which were now a lot quieter as the majority of the tour buses had moved off. We parked up on the side of the road behind some other cars and this saved us the entrance fee of €8 each. We didn't mean for that to happen, we thought you paid inside the cliff area but apparently it's charged in the car park. We walked the full length of the cliffs which was probably a nice slow amble time of 30 mins each way. There were crazy people sitting right on the edge trying to get the classic shot but that was definitely not for me. I stood about 5 feet from the edge just to be sure. The cliffs are such a beautiful sight jutting out in the endless mass of ocean along with the backdrop of the mixed blue and cloudy sky with the sun hitting the water in the distance. They are well worth a visit even if they are super touristy.
Warning: there are some bumps along the terrain so be careful near the edges.
Cliffs of Moher
On the way back from the cliffs we stopped in the cutest little coffee shop in Liscannor called Moher Cottage. The woman who runs it was so lovely and it is such a nice location for a coffee with the backdrop of Liscannor behind it. If you want something a little stronger in a real homely Irish pub, her husband runs the small pub across the road called Considine's and the Guinness is nothing short of exceptional.
Moher Cottage Coffee Shop, Liscannor
We got back to Lahinch town around 5pm and checked in to the Lahinch Golf & Leisure hotel. It was €139 for 2 people including breakfast. The room was nice and spacious and the spa/swim facilities were really good. If you are looking to come to Lahinch on a budget, there are lots of other hotels/B&B's around the place ranging from €20+ per night.
Dinner was next up so I did some research and it seemed like it was a resounding yes to O' Looneys Bar and Waves Restaurant which was right down on the waterfront. We got a lovely corner table overlooking the sea. There were lots of people out on the beach exercising and enjoying themselves.
The menu was absolutely mouth watering. I always battle whether I should get a starter and main just out of guilt of consumption but it all sounded so delicious, I just had to. I ordered the mussels for starter which were steamed in white wine, crème Fraiche, shallots, garlic & Burren herbs. When they arrived, I was shocked it was just a starter. The portion size was unbelievable but I wasn't complaining as mussels are one of my very favourite dishes. For main, I had the seafood linguine. The seafood was all perfectly cooked and the sauce was so creamy and delicious. Not only was the food top notch, the sunset view really completed the evening.
O' Looney's Restaurant, Lahinch
You can't really visit any small town in Ireland and not experience some live traditional music. Lucky for us nearly every bar along Lahinch Main Street was playing some. We visited the Corner Stone Bar, Flanagan's and finished off in The Nineteenth which on a Thursday night turns in to a bit of a student dance bar. So if that's not for you maybe avoid there on Thursdays.
Lahinch is well worth a visit, it is a beautiful part of our country. I can't wait to get back down to explore some more of the area and also more of the West.
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